Post by Arrow on Mar 24, 2017 20:13:31 GMT -8
Larceny Theft
Victor of the 45th Maze Running
The day was odd when the letter arrived sealed by President Snow's signature stamp of wax. The Maze was being pumped with blood from bleeding bodies while Larceny watched meticulously from his room. Endless amounts of paper were piled around where he sat in the center of his bed. Images which were implanted from his pen marked every white surface with the dark of his ink. Although his spear was not the one stopping the hearts of the deceased this year, it was as though he was there beneath the waging waves. Surreal symbols and signs surrounded him as every item a Runner received or every kill a Runner performed found its place on paper. Yet even though his measures were extreme he could not stop all the externalizations of the Quell, some extremities were simply too great for his Runners to calculate.
Lost within one stack Larceny knew was the sketched face of Esme slaughtered in the Maze's opening by a girl too frail to possibly be strong. It was such improbabilities as this which Larceny could do nothing to assist his trainees to avoid. It was a pity really that she died so early, but then again she was quite young and did not harbor the same upbringing Larceny and his twin had. In fact, the age of the Runners this year gave Larceny quite a bit of anguish. The young were not made for a Maze like he had been, like Auto had been. Most were of Esme's kind, small and too kind to kill, the prey of the true hunters. It was during these troubling thoughts that the door to Larceny's room opened and the letter laid into his palms.
Slits formed Larceny's gaze at the seal as he sliced the parchment open. Inside Larceny's chest his heart beat did not rush but his veins were filled with adrenaline from anticipation. A letter addressed to both him and Auto was placed perfectly folded within the envelope. Swiftly Larceny's eyes slid like snakes through the sentences taken in every aspect of the invitation. Each word so methodically written, each phrase so precisely prepared. Its an intriguing gesture the Madame President is certain my sister and I will have no business in replying to. Especially with such a particular address she has chosen for us to meet her at.
Larceny's voice soon calls an avox as I order the letter be read by Auto as well. From this point time seems to turbulently tick away until Larceny stands in a silver suit and a black-orange tie. Within the back seat of a rather lavished luxury limosine he finds his eyes drawn to the screens spinning from fight to fight dotting the entire city. Only once is his vision pulled away as he stares at the Maze Center located at the heart of the Capitol. Fire flickers from all but a single brazier and in the distance he can see the District Three flame still burning with Insidious' life. The fire might be half extinguished from Esme's exile into the sea but at least with one still living the District still had a chance at proving size is not all it takes to survive.
The sound of breaks brings the limo to a halt outside an enormous white gated building in the shape of a sphere. Ice increments down Larceny's spine as he spots the writing appearing and disappearing on the sphere's side: Maze Maker Academy. "Now why does the President want us to meet her here?" Larceny says looking to Auto for a second before stepping out the car and walking up the long steps which many Capitolites dream to meander down.
Inside the immense high tech training facility the twins are ushered into a single "dome" as their called containing a Maze Maker holographic table for controlling a simulated maze. Here the time ticks by for nearly an hour with nothing but impatience. Larceny suddenly sighs and meddles with the deactivation table top. "Why the hell are we here? All we are doing is sitting in fancy clothing for no apparent reason." Its then all thoughts subside as the President walks into the room with a smile on her face.
"Thank you both for coming. We have much to discuss but first please grab a seat." Larceny swiftly sits by his sister's side while President Snow takes her place in a chair across from them. Perhaps now Larceny and Auto would finally achieve some kind of answers from all the secrecy. Not, instead they are met with more puzzles in the President's words. "So what do you think of the facility? Its the best academy we've ever created. Trained some of the best Maze Makers here from Graydon Allure to even the spectacle Illadia Phenix. It really is meant for Panem's most suited for this line of work, don't you both think?"
Silence sits for a second before Larceny is the first to speak after wisely weaving his words together in his mind. "Yes the facility is quite impressive and I am very much a fan of Phenix's Mazes. I believe my favorite piece of her work was the giant human grinder located in her final hallway. How about you Auto?"
Lost within one stack Larceny knew was the sketched face of Esme slaughtered in the Maze's opening by a girl too frail to possibly be strong. It was such improbabilities as this which Larceny could do nothing to assist his trainees to avoid. It was a pity really that she died so early, but then again she was quite young and did not harbor the same upbringing Larceny and his twin had. In fact, the age of the Runners this year gave Larceny quite a bit of anguish. The young were not made for a Maze like he had been, like Auto had been. Most were of Esme's kind, small and too kind to kill, the prey of the true hunters. It was during these troubling thoughts that the door to Larceny's room opened and the letter laid into his palms.
Slits formed Larceny's gaze at the seal as he sliced the parchment open. Inside Larceny's chest his heart beat did not rush but his veins were filled with adrenaline from anticipation. A letter addressed to both him and Auto was placed perfectly folded within the envelope. Swiftly Larceny's eyes slid like snakes through the sentences taken in every aspect of the invitation. Each word so methodically written, each phrase so precisely prepared. Its an intriguing gesture the Madame President is certain my sister and I will have no business in replying to. Especially with such a particular address she has chosen for us to meet her at.
Larceny's voice soon calls an avox as I order the letter be read by Auto as well. From this point time seems to turbulently tick away until Larceny stands in a silver suit and a black-orange tie. Within the back seat of a rather lavished luxury limosine he finds his eyes drawn to the screens spinning from fight to fight dotting the entire city. Only once is his vision pulled away as he stares at the Maze Center located at the heart of the Capitol. Fire flickers from all but a single brazier and in the distance he can see the District Three flame still burning with Insidious' life. The fire might be half extinguished from Esme's exile into the sea but at least with one still living the District still had a chance at proving size is not all it takes to survive.
The sound of breaks brings the limo to a halt outside an enormous white gated building in the shape of a sphere. Ice increments down Larceny's spine as he spots the writing appearing and disappearing on the sphere's side: Maze Maker Academy. "Now why does the President want us to meet her here?" Larceny says looking to Auto for a second before stepping out the car and walking up the long steps which many Capitolites dream to meander down.
Inside the immense high tech training facility the twins are ushered into a single "dome" as their called containing a Maze Maker holographic table for controlling a simulated maze. Here the time ticks by for nearly an hour with nothing but impatience. Larceny suddenly sighs and meddles with the deactivation table top. "Why the hell are we here? All we are doing is sitting in fancy clothing for no apparent reason." Its then all thoughts subside as the President walks into the room with a smile on her face.
"Thank you both for coming. We have much to discuss but first please grab a seat." Larceny swiftly sits by his sister's side while President Snow takes her place in a chair across from them. Perhaps now Larceny and Auto would finally achieve some kind of answers from all the secrecy. Not, instead they are met with more puzzles in the President's words. "So what do you think of the facility? Its the best academy we've ever created. Trained some of the best Maze Makers here from Graydon Allure to even the spectacle Illadia Phenix. It really is meant for Panem's most suited for this line of work, don't you both think?"
Silence sits for a second before Larceny is the first to speak after wisely weaving his words together in his mind. "Yes the facility is quite impressive and I am very much a fan of Phenix's Mazes. I believe my favorite piece of her work was the giant human grinder located in her final hallway. How about you Auto?"